Luxury housing market "slowly" recovering, RE/MAX says

RE/MAX of New England's quarterly report finds opportunities for buyers

Olivia Just, Correspondent

Published
9:50 pm EDT, Thursday, October 27, 2011

The luxury housing market in Connecticut is on the mend, according to RE/MAX's quarterly report on home sales over $1 million in New England's 15 most exclusive communities.

The findings indicate that average prices increased in Darien and Westport, though inventory decreased in both towns.

Greenwich and New Canaan, meanwhile, were cited as ripe targets for luxury buyers, with a decrease in both inventory and prices.

Overall, RE/MAX of New England found gradually rising home prices and fewer days on the market, when compared with the national average.

"It's a positive sign to see most of New England's top 15 luxury towns slowly recovering with the rest of the New England market," Jay Hummer, executive vice president of RE/MAX of New England, said in a statement. "While we expect to see bumps along the way, especially as we move into the winter season, we are hopeful that this important housing segment will continue to experience positive signs of recovery "

Virginia Klein, broker owner of RE/MAX Heritage in Westport, cited slightly different anecdotal findings for the quarter. She has seen steady market growth in Greenwich, in terms of transactions and price, as well as an upswing in the rental market. New Canaan fared similarly, with slight increases.

"What I've seen is that there's a steady market in Greenwich, maybe slightly improved," Klein said. "The New Canaan market, like Greenwich, is up slightly, but the rental market is down a bit."

According to Klein, the Westport market remained steady, but sales and rentals did go down in Darien.

"If I were a consumer, I'd have a lot of inventory to choose from," Klein said. "The market is strong for buyers that want to come in."

The last really solid year for markets across the board was in 2006, Klein said, with the market downturn beginning in 2007 and 2008.

"Now we're seeing a stabilization, but it's definitely off from the peak of the market," she said. "But, there's definitely opportunities in this market. I still think there are consumers who want to put their families into housing when the prices are more reasonable than they've been in a long time."